EL PASO, Texas — An El Paso County judge on Tuesday denied Attorney General Ken Paxton’s efforts to shut down immigrant shelter Annunciation House, which he accused of human smuggling.

What You Need To Know

  • El Paso Judge Francisco X. Dominguez ruled that AG Ken Paxton's attempts to enforce a subpoena for records of migrants served at Annunciation House violated the constitutional rights of the shelter
  • In February, Paxton sued Annunciation House and accused the organization of “facilitating illegal entry to the United States, alien harboring, human smuggling, and operating a stash house”

  • Dominguez ruled that Paxton’s “request to examine documents from Annunciation House was a pretext to justify its harassment of Annunciation House employees and the persons seeking refuge”

  • Texas is expected to appeal the decision

Judge Francisco X. Dominguez ruled that Paxton's attempts to enforce a subpoena for records of migrants served at the Annunciation House violated the constitutional rights of the shelter. His ruling prevents Paxton from seeking the records and protects the shelter from what Dominguez called “harassment and overreaching” by Paxton’s office.

Dominguez wrote that Paxton did not identify what laws he believed were being violated in seeking the documents.

In February, Paxton sued Annunciation House and accused the organization of “facilitating illegal entry to the United States, alien harboring, human smuggling, and operating a stash house.”

State officials visited Annunciation House in early February demanding immediate access to records — including medical and immigration documents — of migrants who had received services at the shelter since 2022. Officials from Annunciation House, which oversees a network of shelters, said they were willing to comply but needed time to determine what they could legally share without violating their clients’ constitutional rights.

Investigators who sought to access records the day after requesting entry were not allowed inside the shelter. Jerry Wesevich, the attorney representing Annunciation House, said that corporations under the Constitution's Fourth Amendment are protected from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government.

In court documents, Dominguez ruled that Paxton’s “request to examine documents from Annunciation House was a pretext to justify its harassment of Annunciation House employees and the persons seeking refuge.”

“The Attorney General could have provided Annunciation House the required precompliance review that would have allowed it to investigate any alleged violations of law. Instead, the Attorney General chose to harass a human rights organization with impunity and with disregard to his duty to faithfully uphold the laws of Texas and the United States,” the document reads. “As the top law enforcement officer of the State of Texas, the Attorney General has a duty to uphold all laws, not just selectively interpret or misuse those that can be manipulated to advance his own personal beliefs or political agenda.”

Texas is expected to appeal the decision.